Check out today's top analyst calls from around Wall Street, compiled by The Fly.
CHEVRON CUT ON HIGHER SPENDING: JPMorgan analyst Phil Gresh downgraded Chevron (CVX) to Neutral from Overweight with a price target of $111, down from $128. The analyst cites valuation and the company's higher guided energy transition spending for the downgrade. Gresh continues to believe that it is imperative for fossil fuel companies to address the "dual challenge" of attracting shareholder interest and transitioning to clean energy transition during this period of "healthy" free cash flow. This will require increased spending, Gresh tells investors in a research note.
GAMING COMPANIES: Wells Fargo analyst Daniel Politzer initiated coverage of MGM Resorts (MGM) with an Overweight rating and $55 price target. MGM, which is well positioned to benefit from a broader recovery on the Las Vegas strip, will soon have over $10B of cash and "management will be disciplined and thoughtful in allocating capital," Politzer tells investors. In addition, BetMGM is the number two sports betting and iGaming platform in the U.S. by share and he values MGM's 50% stake at $12 per share, the analyst noted. Politzer also initiated coverage of Wynn Resorts (WYNN) with an Equal Weight rating and $112 price target. The analyst says that for the stock outperform, Macau gaming revenue needs to recover, and he does not have "much line of sight as to when this may occur." It is hard to have confidence that a higher vaccination rate will simply result in eased travel restrictions, Politzer tells investors in a research note. He expects uncertainty to remain high in Macau.
The analyst further initiated Rush Street Interactive (RSI), Las Vegas Sands (LVS), Penn National (PENN), Bally's (BALY) with Equal Weight ratings and Flutter Entertainment (PDYPY), Caesars (CZR), Boyd Gaming (BYD), Churchill Downs (CHDN), Red Rock Resorts (RRR) and DraftKings (DKNG) with Overweight ratings.
TRANSITION TO 'NEO-BANK': Mizuho analyst Dan Dolev initiated coverage of SoFi Technologies (SOFI) with a Buy rating and $28 price target. SoFi is a one-stop shop digital financial services company that is in the "midst of a powerful transition to a full-fledged mobile-first, super-app neo-bank," Dolev tells investors in a research note. He believes believe this could "accelerate a virtuous cycle" of increased engagement, boosting revenue and profits. The analyst sees path to a 40% sales growth by 2025.
NO 'REVOLUTIONARY' ANNOUNCEMENTS: Apple (AAPL) yesterday introduced several new products, including the iPhone 13, Apple Watch Series 7 and new iPads, Piper Sandler analyst Harsh Kumar tells investors in a research note. However, "there were no revolutionary announcements, as most of the new hardware items were redesigns and performance improvements from previous generations," says the analyst. However, he believes the announced iPhone trade-in programs will continue the 5G iPhone upgrade momentum. Kumar continues to be impressed with the "increased usability and performance" of each new generation of Apple products and reiterates an Overweight rating on the shares with a $175 price target.
BOEING SHARES SHOULD MOVE HIGHER: Susquehanna analyst Charles Minervino said while Boeing (BA) continues to have some unanswered questions related to the ungrounding of the 737 MAX in China, timing of the 787 fix, restarting deliveries, and the subsequent production reacceleration, he believes answers to these questions will serve as potential catalysts for the stock over the next several months. Minervino reiterated his Positive rating and $300 price target on Boeing shares.
MGM Resorts
+ (+0.00%)
Wynn Resorts
+ (+0.00%)
Rush Street Interactive
+ (+0.00%)
Las Vegas Sands
-0.005 (-0.01%)
Use FLUT
+0.16 (+0.16%)
Bally's
+ (+0.00%)
Penn Entertainment
-0.01 (-0.01%)
Caesars
+ (+0.00%)
Boyd Gaming
+ (+0.00%)
Churchill Downs
-0.02 (-0.01%)
Red Rock Resorts
+ (+0.00%)
DraftKings
+ (+0.00%)
SoFi Technologies
+0.03 (+0.21%)
Chevron
+ (+0.00%)
Boeing
+0.01 (+0.00%)
Apple
+ (+0.00%)